The present invention is directed to the fields of furniture and shipment containers and methods therefor.
More specifically, the present invention is directed to a unique method of assembling and shipping chairs in cartons or boxes for that purpose. Even more specifically, the subject invention is directed to a unique method and apparatus for permitting the shipping of chairs at a cost substantially less than that required when using previously employed shipping procedures. Even more specifically, the subject invention is directed to a method and apparatus for packing chairs in cartons of a sufficiently small size so as to permit the cartons to be acceptable to United Parcel Service for shipment thereby at substantially lower rates than is possible with other previously employed shipping procedures.
Chairs and similar furniture items are of such a geometric configuration as to require relatively large rectangular or square conventional boxes or cartons for enclosing such items for shipment; such cartons or boxes consequently both enclose and occupy substantial volumes of waste space in addition to the space being occupied by the chair. Since the shipping rates charged by motor carriers and others are proportional to the volume of the carton enclosing the item being shipped, the conventional cartons in which chairs are shipped result in substantial freight charges due to the fact that their total internal volume is necessary substantially greater than the volume of the chair enclosed within such cartons or boxes. For example, the shipping charge for chairs sold by catalogue stores and delivered by a conventional motor freight can be as high as $90.00. On the other hand, United Parcel Service shipping charges are based upon the weight of the shipped item with the rate being substantially less than that of most other shipping companies. However, United Parcel Service (UPS) will only ship packages or cartons of the like of a shape and size that of relatively small volume which is substantially less than the minimum size rectangular boxes and cartons in which chairs or the like have been previously shipped. The United Parcel Service rule is that a carton or box must not weigh more than 70 pounds or be so dimensioned that the sum of the girth (the perimeter as measured adjacent the top of the box) and the height of the box or carton must not exceed 130 inches. However, until the present invention, full size chair manufacturers could not meet the 130 inch requirement of United Parcel Service.
Up until the present invention, chair manufacturers of adult size chairs have universally employed common carrier shipping such as motor freight carriers for shipping purposes; similarly, retailers normally use either their own in-house delivery and/or local independent delivery companies. In either event shipping and delivery expenses are substantial and far in excess of what would have been possible had they been able to use United Parcel Service for the shipment of such adult size chairs. Moreover, shipping and delivery time using common carrier and normal retail delivery channels normally takes from one to five weeks. Conversely, UPS will normally accomplish delivery in two to five working days. However, up until the present invention, adult size chairs could not be shipped by UPS due to the restrictive size and weight limitations discussed above.
Therefore, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide a new and improved method and structure for permitting the shipment of adult size chairs by United Parcel Service.
A further object of the present invention is a provision of a new and improved method permitting an adult size chair to be packed in cartons of sufficiently small dimensions as to permit their shipment by United Parcel Service.
Yet another object of the invention is the provision of chair shipping apparatus and method in which waste volume in the shipping container is substantially reduced.